1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a backlight assembly and a liquid crystal display including the same, and more particularly, to a backlight assembly with improved luminance and uniformity, and a liquid crystal display including the same.
2. Description of the Related Art
A liquid crystal display (LCD) has advantages, such as slimness, lightness, and low power consumption, such that it replaces the existing cathode ray tube (CRT). As a result, the liquid crystal display (LCD) has been prevalently used for midsize and large products, such as a monitor and a TV, and small-sized products, such as mobile phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and portable multimedia players (PMPs).
Generally, the liquid crystal display (LCD) includes a liquid crystal display panel using optical properties of a liquid crystal, and the LCD drives the liquid crystal display panel, thereby displaying image data. However, liquid crystal used for the liquid crystal display panel does not perform self emission, such that it requires a separate light source.
Therefore, a back surface of the liquid crystal display panel is provided with a backlight assembly including a light source and a light guide panel for receiving light emitted from the light source and for diffusing the light, such that light is irradiated to the liquid crystal display panel through the backlight assembly, thereby implementing identifiable images. As the light source included in the backlight assembly, the light emitting diode (LED) may be used. The LED may be used by being disposed on one side surface of the light guide panel.
In the backlight assembly, in order to maintain a uniform luminance of the backlight at a predetermined level or more, light emitted from a light source should be uniformly incident onto the light guide panel without light loss. If the light source is not closely attached to the light guide panel, and thus a gap is generated therebetween, light loss such as leakage of light occurs, thereby deteriorating the luminance of the backlight. In addition, when the light source is wrongly disposed during the disposition on the side surface of the light guide panel, etc., light is not uniformly inputted to generate hot spots or dark portions, etc., thereby deteriorating the uniformity of the backlight.
The above information disclosed in this Background section is only for enhancement of an understanding of the background of the described technology, and therefore it may contain information which does not form the prior art which is already known in this country to a person of ordinary skill in the art.